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Valamari Empire
The Valamari Empire, also known as The Empire or the Old Empire, was a once almost world spanning feudal empire which has since fallen into decline and then into memory. The Empire's first High King was none other than Saint Fain, the prophet of The Faith. It was his teachings of moral absolutism and law of the gods that led to the first crusades and the empire's eventual expansion into the rest of Norospire. The proud Valamari began in their home city state of Valamar in the Almadhara but political change and unrest moved its capital to Starnchester by the High-Middle Empire. The Fall would signal the end of the mighty empire as the nobility was split in a schism between the traditionalists and the tieflings and an uprising split the realm into the modern kingdoms of Norospire. Wishmoreen historians divide the Old Empire into five stages of expansion; Early Empire, Low-Middle Empire, Middle Empire, High-Middle Empire and High Empire. After this follows a brief stage of decline known as the Late Empire which then becomes The Fall. The Early Empire In the times following the Dragon Wars, the Almadheen people of the southern deserts were the height of civilization. While the other human peoples bickered and battled in small tribal disputes, the desert tribes had built for themselves mighty city states ruled by kings revered almost like gods. However, the true gods of the Almadheen were greed, lust, hedonism and chaos. The Faith holds that these cities were in constant orgies of sin, the streets were bloodbaths serving as a tribute to the true master of the city states: Korzonnon the betrayer who took many faces to deceive the people into worshiping a false pantheon. The human race had thrown off the chains of the dragons only to be enslaved by new masters. Whatever the truth was, an uprising in the city of Valamar instated Kleesius Fain as King and he declared himself the High King of all of Norospire. By founding a faith based on the concepts of love, compassion and peace, Fain was able to gain the support of many people both Valamari and foreign. The Almadhheen nobilities despised him but feared him more because he had the power to topple their cities with revolts. It is oft recorded that King Fain would ride to a city's gates only for the peasantry to open the door for him as the armies inside slaughtered one another. As more and more cities fell to the budding empire, the ruling class of the subjugated people would often become members of Fain's paladin knighthood order, The Sunswords. This period of expansion brought all the cities of the Almadhara Desert into the Valamari Empire and became known in history as the First Crusade. From the southern city of Al-Wadeer, the High King took his wife called Zahraa who would then become the Empire's Queen. It was Fain's eldest son, Prince Jarryah, who would inherit his throne upon his death by the hands of an assassin from the city of Gantala. This has led to the word Gantale being synonymous with heretic or blasphemer among the faithful (especially the Illindorians). King Jarryah's rule was plagued by discontent in the south among Gantala and its allies. A divide between the northern, fairer skinned peoples of Valamar, Hydonara, Falanxia and other north Almadheens and the southern, dark skinned Almadheen of cities such as Gantala, Al-Wadeer, Moskinleer and Raadanta was becoming more and more apparent. The Second Crusade was canonically fought by the gods themselves against the southern city states who washed the sinners away with a mighty flood, but more skeptical Wishmoreen scholars hold that it began when the Sorcerer-Kings of Gantala and Raadanta rose in rebellion against King Jarryah. This was most likely due to harsher rule on the mistrusted southrons. The rebellion ultimately failed, however, with the victory of the Second Crusade over the south. Jarryah was succeeded by High King Evgrius who would lead his people into a new age of philosophical and scientific advancement. The Valamari thrived for many generations in the Early Empire, content for now with their control of the Almadheen Desert. It wasn't until the rule of King Arshaka that their sights were set on further expansion. The Low-Middle Empire Trade and relations had eventually spread from Valamar to the Nothir clans dwelling north of the Valamari mountains. These clansmen had travelled south from the frozen lands of the north and brought with them fruits and meats that could not be found in the south, as well as strong metals from the Skalmarr mounts. Peace could only last so long, though, while the Nothir continued their foul heathenish practices. It was High King Evgrius who first declared the Third Crusade on the Nothir peoples. The war was long and harsh on the Almadheen who were accustomed to fighting in the open plains as opposed to the forests and hills that they now contended with. Yet Valamari technology was advanced enough that each southern paladin was worth ten northern barbarians. Also to be considered is the great unity between the northern and southern Almadheen that was brought about by this new war. Not only were the Valamari more advanced and more united than the Nothir, but they were able to buy-out some of the northern chieftains to turn them against their former brethren. There is even an old Illindorian legend about a Nothir chief who fell so in love with the fabled beauty of a Valamari lady that he travelled to the Almadhara Desert to pledge his blade to her cause. The High King was slain in a battle in the forest now known as Shadowtree. This broke the morale of the Valamari troops and set back the war effort by much territory. The crusade was not lost yet, though, and the new High King, Maruduk. King Maruduk rallied the southern peoples and fought his way through the Nothir hordes with a valiant passion not seen since Sir Fain. Not only was he an excellent warrior and tactician, but King Maruduk saw the importance in consolidating his power as the Empire expanded. He built townships and walls along the way, as well as a road leading his way to the north. As his power spread further and further through military conquest, Maruduk also made sure that his new land was well looked after, such that there were clansmen who would welcome his armies as they craved the civilization he brought. The crusade eventually ended with the capture of the Nothir lands bordering the Gallows Forest. Following the victory of the Third Crusade, Maruduk declared himself the Emperor of Valamar, as his realm was so expansive that he was no longer content with the title of High King. Maruduk's controversial south-Almadhara blood and ties to Gantale nobility were overlooked by most of his Valamari peers due to his strategic genius and obvious zeal for the gods. History would remember him as Saint Maruduk the Great for his achievements both in the war and in the development of imperial infrastructure following the war. Proselytizing in the Nothir lands was largely successful as many clansmen found peace in the lords. It is perhaps due to the benevolent approach of Emperor Maruduk that the Low-Middle Empire welcomed the most foreigners into the faith out of all five stages of the Empire. The Middle Empire To the east of the formidable Valamari Empire lay the Loktheiren lands. Two culture groups had already developed among the Loktheiren known as the Wishmoreen and the Ettarians. The Wishmoreen were mostly peaceful and non-threatening to the Empire, but the Ettarians had started to unify in a defensive pact against Valamar. They had declared a king named King Cattuvvir who ruled from a wooden fortress called Stern-Chaustix where the chiefs of their various tribes would meet and discuss guerilla war with the Valamari. It was rumored that Cattuvvir was in contact with strange beings from another world who he referred to as The Elder Ones and they gave him mystical powers to fight the imperials. These Elder Ones were at once called demons by the then Emperor Acropolita, and Cattuvvir declared a demonic sorcerer. The Fourth Crusade was mounted at the southern borderlands of the Ettarian Confederacy. The war turned out to be an uphill battle, literally, as the Ettarians were far more accustomed to fighting in the mountainous terrain of their homelands. They also moved in small groups which used hit and run tactics to exhaust the much larger Valamari legions. If the Emperor concentrated his efforts in the southern mountain passes, Cattuvvir would hit his northern towns with raids and vice versa. The two sides were locked in stalemate. Furthermore, the crusade had forced the Wishmoreen into alliance with the Ettarians due to Emperor Acropolita's indiscriminate attacks against peaceful Wishmoreen villages. The Wishmoreen seemed to have an even better understanding of the powers of the so-called Elder Ones as they had built their entire spirituality around it. The Loktheiren alliance proved far too strong in elusive tactics and mysterious magical ability for the Empire. Despite the stalemate the Empire found itself in, Acropolita persisted in arguing that the Fourth Crusade could win. He was eventually consumed with a madness such was his commitment to victory and his fear of defeat. He suspected that if he lost to the barbarian hordes, he would surely be deposed as Emperor due to lack of faith. It was his continued commitment to a war he had already lost, however, that led to his fall. Acropolita's eldest son, Priscian, hired an assassin to kill his own father and take the throne. Emperor Priscian immediately called off the Fourth Crusade and took a defensive position on the border. He only ruled for nine days, however, until he was assassinated by his younger brother, Volusian, who saw him as a traitor to the family. Volusian soon had to call the legions from the borders to protect himself as multiple factions vied for control of the Empire in this time of weakness. Loktheiren and Nothir raids became more frequent as more and more ground was lost to the barbarians. After Volusian was slain in battle against a pretender warlord, the Valamari entered a period of Interregnum during which various Warlords ruled separate parts of the Empire. Separate provinces emerged in these conflicts which were; Illindore (the north territory of the conquered Nothir), The Kergerine Steppes (the southern Nothir territory), North Almadhara and South Almadhara. An Illindorian warlord by the name of Ailnothus managed to make contact with the Elder Ones conspiring with the Wishmoreen. These Elder Ones became known throughout the Empire as the Elves, descendants of a race of beings called Eladrin from beyond this world and Hel. This knowledge was thanks to the Illindorian scholars who communed often with the fey creatures by impressing them with feats of philosophy. Ailnothus practiced the druid arts taught by the wood elves and even ventured into the Fey itself. There he met with Eladrin lords and learned of the High Elves of Mal'aran. He then took up arcane magic, becoming a powerful wizard. Upon his return from Mal'aran to the north, the Wishmoreen marveled at his mastery of the arcane for it was a magic unlike any they had ever seen. It was without the cost of the Infernal arts and without the natural limitations of the druid arts. In return for his teachings, the Wishmoreen joined his faction in fighting the Ettarians and the other Valamari factions. And so the Interregnum ended with the ascension of Emperor Ailnothus Elf-Friend to the throne. This new Emperor reunited the provinces and brought in the province of Wishmore as the Wishmoreen pledged their allegiance to his cause. He instated new succession laws based on an election among the nobility, as well as a Senate to oversee smaller matters of state within the five provinces. He built a tower in Wishmore dedicated to the study of the arcane, called Wizard's Peak. Here would convene the Wizard Council and here would rise many great magicians. Allied with Mal'aran, the Empire then spread into the eastern Ettarian lands in a Fifth Crusade and crushed King Cattuvvir's resistance. The Fort of Stern-Chaustix surrendered to the invading force after weeks of siege, and the Ettarian king bent the knee to his conqueror, bringing the province of Ederan into the Empire. After the surrender, the Ettarian king's wife, Lutiercca, fled to the north in disgust with her husband and rallied the Highland Ettarians against the Valamar. For his failure to control his wife, Cattuvvir was executed. As the war had left the Valamari legions exhausted, the highlanders were tolerated for a time. It was for this weakness, the controversial magical abilities he possessed (arcane magic was seen as a distraction from the faith), his mixed Valamari-Nothir heritage and his liberal succession laws that disdain for Emperor Ailnothus grew. He eventually resigned from the throne and retired to study further at Wizard's Peak. Ailnothus' successor was a devout South Almadheen general named Kaosha, who returned the Empire to more traditional policies, but kept Ailnothus' succession laws. Arcane magic was severely limited under this new ruler which was seen favorably by most, but seen as counter productive by some. The High-Middle Empire The High-Middle Empire saw the formation of two major noble factions within the Valamari Empire. The first was the Traditionalists, led by Vizier Florus who was the last known descendant of Saint Fain and who believed in the traditional views of Ancient Valamar including the faith and the power of blood. The second was the Tieflings, led by a Kegerine woman called Tieflarnis, who believed that the only way forward was with the power of arcane magic and knowledge. Emperor Kaosha was a traditionalist, commended for his strong affinity for the faith. His successor, Emperor Marcian was also a traditionalist, who was made a Saint after defeating the Rebel Queen Lutiercca in the Sixth Crusade on the Highlands. Lutiercca's desperate and foul sorceries had left much of the land she had tried to protect tainted with dark magics however, and he died in battle with the undead. Surprisingly, the next ruler was an Empress, Tieflarnis herself. Many suspected that she had used arcane magic to sway the vote, but since nothing could be proved she ruled sovereign. The Empress spent much of her rule in the Fey communing with Eladrin and other spirits. People began to see her as distant and disconnected from her people, but people who openly said this would mysteriously disappear. Her personal guard included elvish green knights and one of her chief advisors was a Forest Gnome. When she tried electing a High Elf to the Valamari Senate, there was a massive outcry and elves were massacred in the streets of Mal'aran in traditionalist riots. The High Cleric seized her with an alliance of paladin orders and burned her at the stake in Sunhelm. This blow to the tiefling cause only spurred the wizards on further. Tensions rose among the nobility which proved too difficult to handle for the Traditionalist Emperor Bardanes who quickly resigned. After a few more rises and falls, the Tiefling Emperor Rhagabe relocated the capital to Starnchester (the city built around Fort Stern-Chaustix) so that he'd have better central control over his realm. Political infighting would continue for some time, with rising Tiefling influence, until the beginnings of the Seventh Crusade. The High Empire The tiefling Empress Laskari feared the fall of the empire by infighting, and so declared a Seventh Crusade to unite her people. The northern-most Nothir peoples continued their heathen rituals in the lands known as Skalmarr in the north, so she targeted this remaining affront to the empire. Dragonborn and Dwarf mercenaries proved invaluable in the conquest of Skalmarr which served as evidence to many of the strength of non-human races. Trade with the dwarves increased and it became more and more common to see non-humans among the cities and towns of the empire. The empire was brought back, however briefly, from decline. The Late Empire After her death, Laskari was made a Saint. Yet her efforts were ultimately in vain. The great-great-great grandson of Florus would eventually take the crown. Emperor Ypsilanti was a traditionalist hard-liner, and many of his supporters were filled with zeal as a descendant of Saint Fain finally sat the throne again. Paladins stormed Wizard's Peak with the intent of killing the Wizard Council. The Arch-Magus, however, cast a spell to launch the tower into the sky where his adepts did battle with what paladins made it into the tower in time. The paladins were defeated, but Ypsilanti's enraged followers everywhere began executing tiefling nobles and supporters. A Wishmoreen Wizard named Waexan managed to rally together his allies and take Starnchester for the Tieflings. Here he crowned himself Emperor and returned the succession laws to their hereditary version. He ruled as a tyrant, with innumerable magical defenses in his palace and an arcane honour-guard to protect him. This is considered by historians to be the beginning of The Fall. The Fall As Emperor Waexan's enemies grew in number and power, he became desperate to protect his dynasty. The Dark Betrayer, Korzonnon, jumped at this opportunity to whisper promises of eternal power in Waexan's ear. A ritual was taught to him, whereby he would make a pact ensuring the eternal perseverance of his House at the cost of dark rites and a black pact with the god of betrayal himself. And so the Tieflings committed such sacrilegious and hideous acts that not even they dared to record them out of shame. The ritual required them to outlaw the faith and to slaughter all those nobles who would not take part, as it would transform the entire surviving nobility into something truly unrecognizable. The tieflings were no longer human, they were a twisted and demonic form. These warlock-princes ruled The Empire for a time, until The Glorious Revolt struck them down. Beginning in Illindore with the last folk loyal to The Faith, the people pushed the Valamari Empire back further and further till it was met in final battle before the walls of Valamar itself. The united forces of Norospire including humans, elves, dwarves, gnomes, dragonborn, even halflings imprisoned the dark creatures summoned forth from Hel in that now haunted and ruined city. None now dare to venture close to that foul place. The united human peoples met in Montre Vene where they signed the Treaty of Montre Vene. This divided the land according to the people groups of Norospire. The northern Nothir claimed Skalmarr and became the Skalmarri, the Wishmoreen claimed Wizard's Peak but lost much of their land to the Ettarians in the deal due to the superior Ettarian negotiation skills, the Ettarians claimed Ederan and became the Ederans, the southern Nothir claimed Illindore and became the Illindorians, the orcs had conquered Kergerine during the revolt and had renamed it Khugarin, and finally the Almadheen returned to the ruins of Almadhara to wander as nomads as punishment for the Empire's sins. Now the Valamari Empire has faded into memory but the civilizations it left in its wake continue in their best possible way.